WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealanders were facing new COVID-19 restrictions after nine cases of the omicron variant of the virus were detected in a family that traveled to Auckland for a wedding this month, the first announced Sunday. minister, Jacinda Ardern.

The so-called “red level” of the response to the pandemic included mandatory use of masks and limits on gatherings of people. The measures took effect on Monday.

Ardern stressed that “it is not a lockdown,” noting that businesses could remain open and people could still visit family and friends and move freely around the country.

“Our plan to manage the omicron cases in the first phase is the same as with delta, where we will do diagnostic tests, trace contacts and isolate cases and contacts quickly to stop the expansion,” the president told reporters in Wellington.

New Zealand was one of the few remaining countries that had avoided outbreaks of the omicron variant, although Ardern admitted last week that the outbreak was inevitable because the variant is especially contagious.

The country has managed to contain the expansion of the delta variant with an average of about 20 cases per day. But he has seen the number of people who arrive in the country and go into mandatory quarantine grow because they are infected with omicron.

That has strained the quarantine system and prompted the government to limit access to returning citizens while it decides what to do about reopening borders, angering many who want to return to New Zealand.

Around 93% of New Zealanders aged 12 years and over have completed their vaccination, and 52% have received a booster dose. The country has just started vaccinating children between the ages of 5 and 11.

The family from the Nelson-Marlborough region attended a wedding and other events during their stay in Auckland, where they came into contact with “more than 100 people”, according to estimates, Ardern said.

“That means ómicron is already circulating in Auckland and possibly in the Nelson-Marlborough region, if not elsewhere,” he added.

The move to the red level also affected Ardern personally. The prime minister was scheduled to get married next weekend, but the celebration was postponed due to new restrictions.

“I just join so many other New Zealanders who have had an experience like that as a result of the pandemic, and anyone else who has been in that situation: I’m so sorry,” he said.

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